Candace Marie (Balch) Dodge

Candace 'Candy' Marie (Balch) Dodge passed away, Friday, February 11, 2022, at the age of 78, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, after a brief illness.
Candy was born April 30, 1943, in Spokane, Washington, the only child of Kermit and Rubye (Mitchell) Balch. In 1948 her family moved to Island Park, Idaho, where they owned and operated Balch's Resort with rental cabins, a restaurant and bar. She had very fond memories of attending the Island Park School. When it was time for junior high school, the family moved to Idaho Falls, Idaho, where she graduated from Idaho Falls High School. Candy studied education and graduated from Idaho State University. Her first teaching assignment was to the Cozy Hollow Country School in North Albany County, Wyoming. The schoolhouse was located at the Vale Ranch, home of the Kennedy Family. Candy's students were the Kennedy children.
During her teaching career, Candy also taught history and social studies at the Ely, Nevada, junior high school. Her career focus shifted as she worked in public libraries in Fraser, Colorado, and Torrington, Wyoming. She was the librarian for the Goshen County, Wyoming, bookmobile. She also worked at the Country Girl Dress Shop.
In 1966, Candy married James "Jim" Dodge in Idaho Falls, Idaho. They made their home in Wheatland, Wyoming, where their only child, Cee Ann, was born. In 1973 they moved to Torrington, Wyoming. Candy and Jim divorced years later.
Candy moved from Wyoming back to Idaho to care for her mother. During this time, she was employed by the Westbank Coffee Shop and the JC Penney department store.
Candy and her mother enjoyed finding the perfect fishing stream, picking wild huckleberries, and driving around the west to visit family. In the last few years, she traded rough Idaho winters for the high desert by moving to Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Candy is survived by her daughter, Cee Ann Vaughan (Ed), Albuquerque, New Mexico and two granddaughters, Corinne Vaughan of Pullman, Washington, and Elizabeth Vaughan of Atlanta, Georgia. She was preceded in death by her parents.